BOSTON -- Boston police say two people were killed and 23 people were hurt Monday when two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

The two explosions that shattered the euphoria of the marathon finish line, sending authorities out on the course to carry off the injured while the stragglers in the 26.2-mile race were rerouted away from the smoking site of the blasts.

Race organizers announced on the group's Facebook page that bombs caused the explosion and said they were working with authorities to determine what happened.

Competitors and race organizers were crying as they fled the chaos. Bloody spectators were being carried to the medical tent that had been set up to care for fatigued runners.

"There are a lot of people down," said one man, whose bib No. 17528 identified him as Frank Deruyter of North Carolina. He was not injured, but marathon workers were carrying one woman, who did not appear to be a runner, to the medical area as blood gushed from her leg. A Boston police officer was wheeled from the course with a leg injury that was bleeding.

About two hours after the winners crossed the line, there was a loud explosion on the north side of Boylston Street, just before the photo bridge that marks the finish line. Another thunderous explosion could be heard a few seconds later.

View full sizeIn this image from video provided by WBZ TV, spectators and runners run from what was described as twin explosions that shook the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday.The Associated Press/WBZTV

Rich Himrich said his wife, Poksil Himrich of Vancouver, had just finished the race when she heard the explosion and saw smoke.

"I was happy to hear from her," Rich Himrich said. "She has run the marathon every other year for the last eight years. She was in shock. She could not believe this was happening.”

Smoke rose from the blasts, fluttering through the national flags lining
the route of the world's oldest and most prestigious marathon. TV
helicopter footage showed blood staining the pavement in the popular
shopping and tourist area known as the Back Bay.

"There are
people who are really, really bloody," said Laura McLean, a runner from
Toronto, who was in the medical tent being treated for dehydration when
she was pulled out to make room for victims of the explosions. "They
were pulling them into the medical tent."

Cherie Falgoust was waiting for her husband, who was running the race.

"I
was expecting my husband any minute," she said. "I don't know what this
building is ... it just blew. Just a big bomb, a loud boom, and then
glass everywhere. Something hit my head. I don't know what it was. I
just ducked."

About 350 runners from Oregon took part in Monday's race, including Claire Carder of Portland, who said she was about a half mile from the finish when sirens started blaring. Soon after that, people ran up to her, saying there had been explosions at the finish and that the race was over.

“They called everybody off the course,” Carder, 60, said. “It was word of mouth."

Runners who had not finished the race were diverted straight down
Commonwealth Avenue and into a family meeting area, according to an
emergency plan that had been in place.

Carder said the explosions have created an unsettled atmosphere in the city.

“People are very anxious,” she said. “There’s a lot of calling and texting. Everyone is checking with all of their friends who were running or with family. “

All of the people she knows who were running are fine, she said. Carder is a longtime marathoner who's run more than 70 marathons. She aims to run in all 50 states, and Boston would have been her 47th.

Portland's Kara Goucher, who finished sixth in the women's division of the race, was OK, posting on Twitter: "Please pray for the victims of the explosion. Please pray for safety."

Goucher's training partner, Shalane Flanagan, who finished fourth in the women's race, posted on Twitter: "My family and I are safe. Thank you for your concerns. Devastating."

Portland civil attorney John Coletti and his wife, Denise, ran the race and finished. A receptionist said both are fine. “I think everyone in the office sent him a text,” when they heard there were explosions.

"Most of our team has been accounted for," said Mikal Peveto, Portland-based Adidas America director of running.

Peveto said the process of accounting for all staff members is not complete.

"Not yet. Not yet. We're going through that process right now," Peveto said.

Peveto said he is especially concerned about employees, primarily in the company's sales staff, who would have been in a specialty running store that is near the finish line.

A Nike spokesperson could not be immediately reached.

Les Smith, director of the Portland Marathon, was in Bonn, Germany, for
its marathon this weekend and called the Boston explosions "a terrible,
terrible tragedy."

"You don’t ever want someone hurt on the
course, let alone by a car or something like that," Smith said. "This
was way more than just that. It’s inexplicable. Your thoughts and
prayers go out immediately with anyone who’s involved.”